Barcelona pushing to complete transfer for Man City's Kerolin that would exceed club-record deal for Lionesses star Keira Walsh

As first reported by journalist Victoria Leite before being confirmed by ge, Barca will soon to return with a third offer for Kerolin after City rejected the first two proposals by the current European champions. The second of those offers would have made the Brazil forward the biggest signing in the history of Barca's women's team, surpassing the £400,000 ($470,000) paid for England international Keira Walsh back in the summer of 2022.

At the time, that deal represented a world-record in the women's game, beating the £250,000 ($334,000) that Chelsea paid to sign Pernille Harder in 2020. However, finances in the sport have exploded so much in recent years that Walsh's move to Barcelona now ranks outside the top 25 most expensive signings in history, with the midfielder herself even moving again for a higher fee last year, when she joined Chelsea.

How much Barca will have to pay to bring Kerolin to Catalunya, and where that price tag would rank among the biggest in the women's game, remains to be seen, with Sport understanding that Kerolin's contract, which runs until 2028, contains a release clause of over €1m (£857,000/$1.14m) - a figure Barca cannot meet. However, ge reports that both the Blaugrana and City are "working to find common ground and finalise the transfer".

It was only last year that Kerolin actually signed for Man City, arriving in the 2025 January transfer window after three years in the United States with the North Carolina Courage. She showed glimpses of her talent in those first few months at the club, scoring four goals before the season's end, then exploded into life in her first full campaign in the Women's Super League.

In 2025-26, Kerolin scored nine goals and provided five assists in the WSL as Man City won the title for the first time in 10 years, with her hat-trick in the 5-1 thrashing of then-holders Chelsea in February a stand-out performance. The 26-year-old's 14 direct goal contributions was only bettered by three players in the division - City stars Khadija Shaw and Vivianne Miedema, and Arsenal striker Alessia Russo.

Those numbers came despite Kerolin only starting nine league games, too. The forward picked up an injury early in the campaign which ruled her out for almost three months, and once she returned to fitness, competition for places was tough, especially with the team having started the year so brilliantly. Her ability to make an impact from the bench saw her force her way in the line-up quickly, though, and a run of seven league starts in the title run-in would return seven goals and two assists to put City on the brink of triumph.

It's easy to see why Barca would like to add the Brazil star to their squad, then. A dynamic and exciting forward, Kerolin possesses an X-factor that can decide a game in a moment. The Blaugrana need that, too, because they have just bid farewell to a number of key players, including a couple in attack.

Salma Paralluelo's departure from the club was announced earlier this week, after negotiations over a new contract did not go anywhere. The Spain international, who scored twice in the Champions League final in May, has interest from Arsenal, Lyon, Paris Saint-Germain and London City Lionesses, having already rejected an offer from Chelsea.

Most notable, though, is the exit of Alexia Putellas, the two-time Ballon d'Or winner who called time on her 14-year stay at the club before the end of last season. Putellas was crowned Champions League Player of the Season after helping to propel Barca to a fourth European crown and Barca desperately need to recruit match-winners to fill the void created by her goodbye, to support a still-talented forward line that includes Ewa Pajor and Caroline Graham Hansen, among others.

Why would City be content to let Kerolin go, then, as the report suggests? Well, the squad is well-stocked in attack, with Shaw and Miedema supported by Lauren Hemp, Aoba Fujino and Mary Fowler, the latter of whom missed almost the entire season after suffering an ACL injury in April of last year. Her return will be almost like a new signing for City in 2026-27, on top of an actual new signing in Beth Mead.

The attraction of a significant fee for Kerolin should also allow the club to reinvest in the squad and replace her effectively as they look to build greater depth ahead of a return to the Champions League. That said, Kerolin's quality won't be easy to replace, with the recruitment team needing to get those new signings right if indeed she does bid farewell to Manchester.